Weather

Canada's wildfires trigger air-quality alert in Maryland

By Derek Beasley

June 6, 2023 / 10:41 PM EDT / CBS Baltimore

Canada's wildfires are triggering air-quality alerts in Maryland and other states

BALTIMORE -- The smoke from the fires in Ontario and Québec is only going to get worse in the next day or so.

Fires in Ontario and Québec create air-quality problems

There is a Code Red air-quality alert for Maryland on Wednesday because there is the potential for more smoke, which will cause big problems for some people—especially those with respiratory issues.

The air-quality alert goes all the way out to Washington County and it goes all the way to Southern Maryland and the Eastern Shore.

There's a northerly wind, and the smoke on a northerly wind is going to get pulled southward.

So, as long as the pattern remains in place, which will likely be through Thursday, it is going to keep driving more plumes of smoke toward Maryland.

There is not going to be a change in upper-level winds to get the smoke out of here until the weekend. That is when conditions should improve across the area.

Derek Beasley

Derek Beasley joined the WJZ First Alert Weather Team in March 2022. He was promoted in March 2023 to become WJZ's first-ever Chief Meteorologist.